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Thread: What date did you choose to declare as the 'start date' of your relationship? (partnership visas)

  1. #1
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    Default What date did you choose to declare as the 'start date' of your relationship? (partnership visas)

    I mean, relationships are fluid and build gradually, and rarely start overnight... So how did you choose which day to list as your 'start date'? The day you moved in together? The day you became exclusive sexual partners? The day you started introducing each other to your family and friends? The day you married and got a ring?

    I'm dithering between choosing the day we moved in together or the time period where we started publicly recognizing each other as partners. They are a few months apart, though either start date will be sufficient for us to meet the 12-month minimum benchmark for residence. Probably not going to go into the morbid details of our sexual relationship (I assume we wouldn't have to mention that at all if we prefer, since there can be no 'proof' of it anyway?), and we won't be marrying anytime soon.

    Suggestions?

  2. #2
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    When we started to co habituate, which is when the clock starts from immigrations point of view.

  3. #3
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    They really only care about the time you have lived together as a couple.

    Daniela

  4. #4
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    Hmm, there may be a few problems with that. The first is that we only started introducing each other to friends etc. a few months after we started living together, so our letters of witness reflect that discrepancy (they think that our start date was later). The second is that he applied for residence a few months after we started living together but we didn't declare me to be his partner in that application. These will all raise complications, yeah? Especially the latter. I have prepared a cover letter to explain why he did not declare me (and JandM has done a great job of explaining it in my previous threads), but I still feel really scared because there is no way to 'prove' that we had no intention to mislead, is there? It all depends on whether our immigration officer believes my letter or not. Besides our friends did not even know that we were in a committed relationship until later than that. So I was thinking it would make things simpler to declare the start date as after the public knew (and his application was already submitted)?

  5. #5
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    Ok, well you will have to prove a trail. Bills, bank statements etc showing you were both at the same address.

  6. #6
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    Go with what you can prove. INZ aren't going to want to pry into all kinds of personal details. The CO just has to tick a box that you have shown evidence of living together for the last 12 months, and continuing. That is the one thing you HAVE to supply. Also, they will have heard EVERYTHING, relationships-wise, so I can't imagine that the element of keeping it private from the rest of the world in the early stages is going to raise any eyebrows, if you decide to mention it.

  7. #7
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    Thanks, that is reassuring. I guess the part that really scares me is the section in the immigration manual that says, "If your partner did not declare you when he applied for residence, you WILL be declined unless an immigration officer is convinced that the non-declaration occurred with no intention to mislead". That is just so fuzzy and vague. Everything else can be proven with documents and boxes ticked, but this is so subjective. I can't think of any way we can possibly prove the fact that we were not in a relationship-stage where we felt it appropriate to declare each other as legal partners yet, back then, so how will they decide whether there was 'intention to mislead' or not?

  8. #8
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    Breathe. You're jumping at shadows. Everybody has a tendency to think the worst while their (whatever kind of) application is in the pipeline - it's just human nature. But fight it. If INZ have questions, you'll answer them. Now, make all that hassle go back in the box, and think about something nice.

  9. #9
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    Okay. Trying to breathe.

  10. #10
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    To calm your nerves:
    Our daughter and her partner were in a very similar situation. In an earlier application she had not mentioned him as being her partner, but some time later plans did change. So much that he then wanted to apply for residence through partnership which he did eventually. They wrote an explanatory letter which got at first challenged by their case officer, then amended by them and finally became accepted so that his residence was granted.

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